The impact of sequestration is challenging and potentially
devastating for hospice providers. The
2% decrease in payments for services provided as of April 1, 2013 is on top of
a -.5% reduction resulting from the 7-year phase out of the budget neutrality
adjustment factor (BNAF).

News of layoffs and even hospices closing as a result of
this financial pain is all too frequent, especially in light of the increased
scrutiny providers are experiencing.

Budget cuts are an ongoing reality for hospices. The challenge is to ensure that the items
being cut don’t impact the quality of care at the bedside or compliance with
regulations. Short-term cuts that affect
these areas will result in potentially irreparable damage to the organization’s
ability to provide the quality of care patients and their caregivers deserve.

At the CEO Section Meeting at NHPCO’s recent Management and
Leadership Conference there was a robust discussion of practical ways that
hospices were already realizing significant savings. Some of the ideas shared included:

Leasing cars for those IDT members who typically
drive significant mileage in a given week, which many providers said yielded
significant savings;

Utilizing professional volunteers and optimizing
volunteer services to supplement administrative staff; and

Reducing staffing through attrition and
reductions in force.

An article in the NHPCO’s NewsLine (October 2012) details several of these and other
cost-savings measures that Hospice by the Bay implemented, resulting in a $24
per patient day reduction in costs.

The sequestration cuts, coupled with increased regulatory
scrutiny, will continue to present challenges for hospice providers for the
foreseeable future.

In solidarity with
our hospice subscribers, clients, colleagues, and friends, we are reducing our
rates by 2% for new and renewing subscribers to the Hospice Education Network’s
Unlimited
subscription, effective immediately through June 30, 2013. We
believe that staff and volunteer education is so vitally important to ensuring
quality care we want to do everything we can to prevent it from being on the
chopping block of expenses to cut. To
that end, we are also offering an additional month free (13 months for the
price of 12) for providers that subscribe or renew prior to June 30, 2013.

Call us today (866 969 7124) if you need more
information. Or click here for an order form.

And know that we will continually try to find ways to
support the hospice community during these difficult times.